time to get up early!

sigh.
49 degrees on the car temp this morning.
it's definitely fall and definitely back to school time!
thankfully we got up in enough time to take pictures AND find jackets :)

as you can see ryan was a little shell shocked
that he wasn't still watching cartoons at 8:30.

garrett was too cool for a picture,
and olivia was happy to be back with "the other olivia"

and josie...
she keeps asking when it's time to pick up "the big kids"
but she's loving having cartoons all to herself!

alumni 5k

a few weeks ago emily & i ran in the high school alumni 5k...
we had our very own cheering section.

we finished with respectable times, despite the horrendous humidity.

we actually had a pretty big cheering section :)

and the very first time in my running "career" i won 2nd place in my age bracket...
ohh how i love my "old" age bracket now :)

time to ramp up the training because next year i want 1st!

HA HA

future husband, beware :)

today at meijer we walked past the bedding section.

olivia was in heaven looking at all the back to college stuff.

peace signs galore!

she begged and begged for "big girl" sheets & comforter set.

i said i'd love to buy her a new set,

but i wanted to wait a few years until we had a new house.

then she could have a whole bedroom to decorate.

olivia: ok... but mom, shopping is just SO addicting!!!

{preaching to the choir, olivia! HA}

3 {faces of summer} and 1 {action shot}

eleven

happy anniversary, tim!

i love you :)

xoxo

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

today's the big day!
you've been counting down for a long, long time :)

happy 5 years old ry ry!!
when did you get so big????

and just so you know what you were like when you turned 5 -
here's a little bit about you this past year.

you...

love super heroes and know lots of fun facts about them

could play your DS for hours and hours

can work the netflix remote better than your older brother & sister :)

have a super hero costume on at radom times during the day

always ask "how was work today?" when dad gets home

love a big hug in the morning & lots of cuddling at night

love oatmeal for breakfast {and sometimes a cup of coffee}

are super excited to go to school with Olivia & Garrett in the fall

accidentally wear your underwear or shorts backwards most days {and don't bother to change}

say "i'm gonna come in and 'nuggle you tonight mom" at bedtime {and you usually do}

...

but my most favorite thing about you is...
you are ALWAYS so stinking happy!

we love you ryan!

it's time for strawberry pie...

...because it's your birthday, Tim!
{definitely a yummy tradition}

we hope you had a fun birthday!

love you!!!

a fun day in pictures...

celebrating family

today we celebrated mother's & father's day with the entire family -an annual tradition that has come to be known as "ma/pa day" :)
it doesn't happen very often that ALL the cousins are together.so a group shot was taken immediatelybefore feedings, naps & meltdowns occurred.
isn't this a cute well behaved bunch?

we spent the afternoon eating, relaxing, getting wet
and making mark glad he has just one child :)

definitely a fun day celebrating family!

oh and we might have gotten a little crazy too...

dream big?

ryan: mom, can i be ANYTHING i want to be when i grow up?

me: sure

ryan: ok, then i'm going to be a bad guy.

no more pencils, no more books

woo hoo
last day of school!!!!

congratuations on a great year!
we are so proud of you :)

you made lots of awesome friends this year
AND
you learned lots!!

nice job olivia & garrett!!!!

now on to planning a fun summer...

it's officially...

SUMMER!!

and it's also official that a certain 3 year old has NO fear of the water.
time to find some floaties that don't have holes in them :)

nope, never a dull moment around here...

it's official...

josie is a big girl...

with a big girl bike!

just yesterday

it seems like just yesterday that this crazy boy was starting D4s...

it's been a great year
and i can't believe it's over :(

ryan has had such a fun year.
he's ridden the bus alone, gone of field trips
and made lots of friends.

and best of all, he found a kid JUST LIKE HIMSELF.

no joke, these boys are crazy and so much alike.
i love it!

congrats on a great year of preschool, ryan!!!

you are one awesome kid who's growing up -
why can't you stay 4 forever???

***

ok, i do find it pretty funny that his teacher
is wearing the same shirt in these 2 pictures :)

good results

josie has held onto naps longer than any of the other kids.
lately, though, it's been a struggle.
she will still nap - it just takes her a lot longer to fall asleep in her bed.

so i finally gave in and started the -
"you don't have to nap, just watch this movie on my bed" routine.
i must say i'm pretty pleased with the results :)

outtakes

i had good intentions of putting up some {belated} easter pictures but...

aren't these outtakes just a little more fun?